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Williamsport Area School District
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Developing responsible citizens through excellence in education
In This Issue
TICKETS NOW ON SALE!  WAHS alumnus and Grammy winner Dashon Burton to return to celebrate the WASDEF's 10th Anniversary Celebration.  Tickets will be available at the Community Arts Center Box Office and the WASD District Service Center.  $12/adult, $7/student (cash, check only).
DISTINGUISHED ALUMNI! 
Marvin and Jean Staiman will receive this year's Distinguished Alumni Award on Oct. 21!  Read more.
Friday, October 10, 2014
There will be no school for students Monday, Oct. 13, due to a county-wide in-service.
Curtin's Hiawatha Mural Series Dedicated on Oct. 1
Restoration artist Michelle Mapstone speaks.
After an 11-year process to restore and reinstall 46 Hiawatha murals, a public dedication ceremony was held on Oct. 1 at Curtin Intermediate School with about 100 Curtin alumni and community members alike who turned out for the celebration.

 

Special guest speakers included project chairman and retired district faculty member James Dougherty; Michelle "Mickey" Mapstone, restoration artist; former Curtin principal Jay Fetterman; and Jennifer Wilson, president and CEO of the First Community Foundation Partnership of Pennsylvania, which provided the largest grant of $6,000 toward the effort in 2003.

 

State Rep. Rick Mirabito also provided a citation in recognition of the murals and the work involved to restore them.

 

For more than 50 years, the murals, which depict scenes from Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's poem "The Song of the Hiawatha," surrounded the perimeter of the then-Curtin Middle School cafeteria, until they were removed and placed in storage for building renovations in 1985.  Read more. 
State Recognizes Seven WASD 'Banner Schools'
Seven of the eight schools in WASD were recognized by the state recently for Fidelity of Implementation at the Universal Level for its School Wide Positive Behavior Interventions and Supports program.

 

Designated as "banner schools," the primary, intermediate and middle schools in the district are proudly displaying just that in each of their buildings this year for "teaching what we want students to do," said David Wright, director of student services.

 

According to Wright, the program is designed to reinforce and recognize appropriate behavior, while subtly applying a consistent set of tiered consequences for negative behavior.

 

Students are continually reminded - either verbally or visually - to adhere to the expectations to "be present, be respectful, be responsible and be safe" throughout areas of the building that also include school buses, assemblies and school-related activities. 

Recognitions and incentives are in place for demonstrating good behavior, such as earning "Millionaire Bucks" at the primary and intermediate level, where students can become a member of the Principal's 100 Club and be involved in a raffle.

 

Ultimately, the program helps and has to an extent created a school culture change by teaching and re-teaching positive behavior in the environments encountered and during activities in which students participate.

Read More. 
Jackson Primary Students Raise, Donate $2,554 to Ronald McDonald House
Jackson Primary School students celebrated more than their annual Walk-a-Thon on Oct. 2 when they donated a combined $2,554.90 to the Ronald McDonald House, complete with an on-site visit by Ronald McDonald himself.  

 

The students raised the money on their own over a couple of weeks, and presented the organization with the check outside the school as one.

The total presented in the check does not include the number of aluminum can tabs collected (seen along the front of the photo).
Classroom Capture: Technology Used in the Intermediate Level Classroom
A student in Beth Lyons' fifth-grade classroom at Curtin Intermediate School works on determining degrees with an interactive protractor on the whiteboard.
Walk into any district intermediate school classroom in the district and you'll find rows of computers, interactive whiteboards and possibly even a few grant-funded iPads.

Such is the case in Beth Lyons' fifth-grade classroom at Curtin Intermediate School.  Earlier this week, Lyons conducted a lesson from the district's Everyday Math curriculum on angles - a difficult subject made more interactive - and even fun - through the use of the Smartboard.

"This is the direction in which these kids' lives are headed," Lyons said of the technology.

In particular, she spoke on the interactive whiteboards that are found in nearly every classroom in the district, thanks to a movement made several years ago to incorporate 21st century technology into classroom instruction using grant funds. The whiteboards help increase student engagement, while also enhancing instruction through the employment of different software applications that supplement lessons.

All that could be seen Thursday morning in Lyons' classroom.

Using a digital protractor followed by an educational game identifying degree points along a circle, Lyons said the technology helps students apply and practice their skills.  Students were eager to take their turn at the board and remained attentive through the entire lesson, often helping their peers at the board who appeared stumped. 

"It definitely helps in the delivery of instruction and explanation," Lyons said. "Plus, it gets the students up and creates an interaction with the lesson."
ParenteBeard Contributes $2,500 to WASDEF's Return to Glory Campaign
ParenteBeard announced its contribution of $2,500 to the WASDEF's Return to Glory capital campaign on Sept. 29.

The campaign is a fundraising effort driven by a volunteer task force of community leaders with a goal of raising $2.7 million to restore and upgrade the Williamsport Area High School's 42-year-old stadium.

 

To date, the campaign has secured commitments and donations of about $1.95 million toward its goal over the last 14 months, according to Executive Director Greg Hayes.
Foundation Gift Gives 193 New Books to Libraries to Honor Summer Readers
Here, 36 of the successful summer readers from Cochran proudly stand with the books awarded to them for their achievement.
One hundred and ninety-three kindergarten through sixth-grade students successfully completed the 2014 Summer Reading Program through the James V. Brown Library.

In recognition of their achievement, the WASD Education Foundation provided $2,000 to the district to purchase library books in their honor, complete with dedication bookplates.  The books will be donated to the students' respective school libraries once they read them.

The following is a list of district schools and their corresponding number of successful summer readers:  Cochran, 36; Hepburn-Lycoming, 31; Stevens, 25; Curtin, 41; and Lycoming Valley, 28.

Since 2011, the WASD Education Foundation has committed $14,000 to the Summer Reading Program in an effort to increase the number of new books made available in the district libraries each year. 
Portion of 'Inside Out: Williamsport Proud' Mural Finds Home on WAHS Wall
Last year, the WASD Education Foundation's Teacher Mini-Grant Program provided $1,500 to high school art teacher Andrea McDonough-Varner and her students to create "Inside Out: Williamsport Proud," a global art project that showcases the diversity of the community.

In March, community members were invited to have their portrait taken at Jeremiah's above The Bullfrog in downtown Williamsport to be included in the project.

Part of that public art display is now on a wall on the second floor of the high school, as depicted here. 
National Merit Scholarship Corporation Names WAHS Commended Students
WAHS is proud to announce that the following students have been named as Commended Students in the 2015 National Merit Scholarship Program:  Ian Dinsmore, Devon Dolley, Joshua Morrison, Ian Perry, and Susan Reiff

A letter of commendation from the school and National Merit Scholarship Corporation, which conducts the program, have been sent to each of these scholastically talented students.

About 34,000 Commended Students throughout the nation are being recognized for their exceptional academic promise.  Although they will not continue in the 2015 competition for National Merit Scholarship awards, Commended Students placed among the top 5 percent of more than 1.5 million students who entered the 2015 competition by taking the 2013 Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT/NMSQT).
First Teacher Appreciation Night Held During Recent Pre-Game Ceremony
Football players, cheerleaders and team managers recognized their favorite teacher during the first Teacher Appreciation Night on Friday, Sept. 26.

The event honored 25 teachers in a pre-game ceremony on the field. 

 

Teachers and the players who selected them are as follows:  Tyler Anderson, Mr. Sacavage; Grace Chestnut, Mr. Rinker; Eli Clary, Mr. Fink; Tristin Connor, Mr. Steppe; Kurt Danneker, Mr. Croce; Dylan Everett, Mrs. Robertson; Denver Fredericks, Mr. Slaughter; Isaiah Hankins, Mrs. Weaver; Christopher Harvey, Mr. Williamson; Jack Holmes, Mr. Sacavage; Jalen Jackson, Mr. Keiser; Keough Johnson, Mrs. Randall; Ben Kelley, Mr. Moon; Kevin Mercer, Mrs. Takach; Cierra Nelson, Mr. Fink; Kendra Pysher, Mrs. Butler; Jerah Reeves, Mr. Freed; Frank Rose Jr., Mr. Gossner; Luke Seyler, Mr. Davis; Ross Stebbins, Mrs. Dincher; Elliot Walker, Mrs. Plocinski; Bryce Wright, Mr. Lee; Breyana Anderson, Mrs. Derrick; MaClay Derrick, Mrs. Miller; Sierra Eberle, Mrs. Deb Bair; Selena Kelley, Mrs. Keeler; Sieira Meuse, Ms. Pulizzi; and Zakiya Walker, Mr. Freed.

To view more photos from the event, click here.
Homecoming King, Queen Crowned During Halftime at Homecoming Game
Congratulations to this year's Homecoming King and Queen, Tiana McCormick and Deretz Fletcher, both of whom were crowned during the Homecoming Court Celebration at halftime on Oct. 3. 

Those on this year's Homecoming court were:  Taylor Brooks and Cole Robinson; Ellora Figured and Nate Kendall; Giana Zangara and Isaac Milliken; and Elizabeth Good and Sam Weaver.

To see more photos of the court, visit our Facebook page
Three District Champs Named, Advance from High School for Golf, Tennis
Congratulations to our WAHS district champs!

Senior Maggie Manchester and junior Isabel Bauer won the District II/IV Sub-Regional Class AAA Doubles Tennis Tournament. 

They will advance to the PIAA state tournament in Hershey on Friday, Oct. 31.

Sophomore William Knauth won the District IV, Class AAA Golf Championship on Saturday, Oct. 4, at the Towanda Country Club. 

He advances to the PIAA Regional Tournament on Tuesday, Oct. 14 at Golden Oakes Golf Course in Reading
WAHS Marching Millionaires Earn Highest Overall Score in Four Categories
Congratulations to the Marching Millionaires who competed at Milton High School with 12 other bands and once again earned the highest overall score as well as best percussion, best color guard, best music and best visual program.

The band is hosting the annual Millionaire Invitational Marching Band Competition at STA Stadium at WAHS on Saturday, Oct. 11.

The competition starts at 6:30 p.m. and will feature 10 fantastic competitive marching bands.

Tickets are $7 for adults and $5 for students and seniors - a terrific bargain for an evening of entertainment!

Survey Says 
In order to help build on its mission and encourage engagement, networking and communication among WASD alumni, the Alumni Association is asking that graduates fill out this brief survey regarding events and schedules.

Alumni Apparel 
Sport your WAHS alumni apparel! Alumni have their choice of ordering hoodies, T-shirts or polos, complete with the ability of customizing them to reflect their graduating year! Proceeds from the order will support the WASD Alumni Association.  Deadline for orders is Nov. 3.  For ordering information, click here.
Williamsport Area School District | | [email protected] | 2780 West Fourth Street. Williamsport, PA 17701
570-327-5500 | www.wasd.org

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